In an interview with Aruán Ortiz for the December/January issue of Jazz Magazine (France) he talks about his work with the James Brandon Lewis Quartet and inspiration for his latest album, Creole Renaissance.

Introducing our 2025 Fellowship Finalists: In Music Composition - Aruán Ortiz in his own words:

My work as a composer, pianist, and musical researcher is rooted in lived experiences and the collective memory of Afro-diasporic communities across the Americas. It is a continuous process of transformation where sound becomes a way to understand myself and the world around me.

Pianist/composer Aruán Ortiz, classically trained in Cuba and influenced by jazz musicians from Chick Corea to Muhal Richard Abrams, narrates his journey over excerpts from his 2025 concert at Roulette pushing the boundaries of musical Afro-diasporic traditions and storytelling. A 2024 Guggenheim Fellow, we'll hear solos and ensemble works with clarinetist Don Byron, flutist Nicole Mitchell, and percussionist Mauricio Herrera alongside strings and vocalists.

This insightful interview for Afrolatin@ Forum by Ayanna Legros explores the creative universe of Aruán Ortiz and his Cuban-Haitian heritage.

In this episode of the LINER NOTES podcast, Aruán describes the inspiration that he was able to draw from the Négritude movement that originated in Paris in the early part of the 20th century for his latest album, Creole Renaissance.

“We generally appreciate musicians and composers for their musical talents, which Aruán Ortiz possesses in abundance, but we rarely see composers as intellectuals, as people who engage in articulate and coherent thought. Aruán Ortiz is a composer of high intellectual caliber, a characteristic that has been consistent throughout his work.”

Aruán is interviewed by Unlimit Jazz magazine (Italy) about his Flamenco Criollo project and upcoming album, Creole Renaissance.